Windmill.



F. W. PIERSON.

WINDMILL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 10, I914.

Patefited June 6, 1916.

THE COLUMBIA PIANOGRAPH ,Cd., WASHINGTON, D. C.

'F. W. PIERSON.

WINDMILL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 10. 1914.

Patented June 6, 1916;

3 SHEETS-SHEETG.

FA/Pzemton FRITZ W. PIERSON, OF MISSOULA, MONTANA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO THOMAS J.

FARRELL, JR., OF MISSOULA, MONTANA.

WINDMILL. I

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 6, 1916.

Application filed November 10, 1914. Serial No. 871,367.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRrrz W. PIERSON, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Missoula, in the county of Missoula and State of Montana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Windmills, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to a wind mill and has for its principal object the production of a simple and eflicient governing means, whereby the vanes will be automatically swung to a closed position so as to prevent the rotating shaft from operating beyond a predetermined number of rotations owing to the velocity of the wind.

Another object of this invention is the production of a simple and efiicient governing means which are so carried as to normally retain the vanes in an open position so as to catch the breeze which will auto-, matically operate so as to swing the vanes toward a closedposition to reduce the rapidity with which the shaft will rotate when in operation.

Another object of this invention is the production of a wind mill having vanes so formed as to normally catch the wind for rotating the shaft and also provided with a simple governing means for swinging the vanes to a closed position, the device being formed of a minimum number of parts so as to efliciently operate and at the same time eliminate the multiplicity of parts which are likely to become inoperative. With these and other objects in View this invention consists of certain novel combinations, constructions, and arrangements of parts as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

111 the accompanying drawings :'Figure 1 is a detail perspective view of the assembled wind mill showing the vanes in aclosed position. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section through the upper portion of the wind mill showing the vanes in an extended position. Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3'3, of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig 4c is a section taken on line 44, of Fig. 2 looking in the directionof the arrow.-

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view through the vanes showing the same in a closed position, the supporting fingers being shown in top plan. Fig. 6 is a Section taken on line 6-6, of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 7 is a section taken on line 7 7, of Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a section taken on line 88, of Fig. 2. Fig. 9 is a detail perspective view of the supporting hub and the radiating fingers carried thereby. 9 Fig. 10 is a vertical section through a portion of one of the vanes illustrating the manner in which the same is supported. Fig. 11 is a section taken on line 11-11, of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 12 is a section taken on line 12-12, of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 13 is a fragmentary sectional view through a certain supporting block used in connection with this device. Fig. 141 is a fragmentary detail perspective view of the lower end of an adjusting rod used for retaining the vanes in a semi-closed position. Fig. 15 is a vertical section through the device as shown in Fig. 14 illustrating themanner in which therod is held in an adjusted position. Fig. 16 1s a detail perspective view of a certain detachable lug carried by the operating plate of the governing member. Fig. 17 is a detail perspective view of one of th'eopcrating levers. Fig. 1-8. is .a fragmentary sectional View through a portion of the frame illustrating the manner in which the same is conneote I r Referring to the accompanying drawings by numerals 1 designates the standards-of the framework which are connected at their upper ends by means of the strips 2 and intermediate their ends. by means of the strips 3, these strips 2 and 3 being held in engagement -with the standards 1 by means of the bolts 4. The bolts 4 also carry the diagonal brace members 5 which extend from one of the standards 1 to the adjacent standard as clearly disclosed in Fig. 1. The upper ends of the standards 1 are also provided with the clips 6 which are carried by the bolts 4, and upon these clips 6 the plat-. form 7 isv secured by means of theretaining bolts 8. This platform 7 is provided with a central body 8 upon which the vanes and governing members are supported.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that a very simple and durable frame has been produced for the wind mill and which is so constructed as to form a rigid structure. 7 a

The body 8 of the platform 7 is adapted to carry the flange 9. from which extends the neck 10. This neck 10 is of suiiicient size to allow the elongated sleeve 11 to pass therethrough and this sleeve 11 is provided with a head 12 which rests upon the fiange 9. The retaining bearing 13 is held by a set screw 14 in fixed engagement with the rotating shaft 15 passing upwardly through the sleeve 11. Upon the upper portion of this hearing 13 the lower end of the sleeve 11 is adapted to rest. From the head 12 there extends a plurality of radiating fingers 16 whiclrare carried at a spaced distance from the radiating fingers 17 extending from the hub 18. The hub 18 is held at a spaced distance from the head 12 by means of the spacing ring 19. Fixedly secured to the upper end. of the shaft 15 there is also carried a hub 18 from which the fingers 17 radiate. Each vane 20 is semicircular in shape and has the ears 21 extending at right angles thereto as clearly shown in Fig. 10. The pivot rod 22 passes through these cars 21 and also through one of the radiating fingers 17 which are provided with apertures 23 for the reception of the rod. By supporting the vanes in this manner it will be seen that the same may easily swing in a desired direction, and will also be positively retained in engagement with the fingers 17 and 17. These vanes 20 are also provided with the angularly extending lips 24 in which are formed the apertures 25 for the reception of the hooked end 26 and link 27. One link 27 is carried by each of the radiating fingers 16 of the head 12, and these links are held in engagement with these fingers 16 by means of the hooked ends 28. By allowing these links to engage the fingers 16 and at the same time engage the-lips 24 it will be seen that the pivotal movement of the vanes as the same swing toward an open position will be limited. In order to automatically swing these vanes toward a closed position after the shaft :reaches a predetermined speed while revolving there is provided an operating plate 29 having the retaining neck 30 extending therefrom. This retaining neck 30 is also provided with a set screw 31 which passes through'the neck and engages the sleeve 11. In this manner it will be seen that the operating plate will be held in a fixed engagement with the sleeve so as to prevent the independent rotation of the sleeve 11 within. theneck 30. This plate 29 is adapted to carry a pair of lugs 32 which are bifurcated at their lower portion as clearly shown in Fig. 16 to provide the slot 33. Each of these lugs 32 is also provided with a threaded stem 34 which passes through the plate 29 and carries the clamping nut 35. These clamping nuts are adapted to retain the lugs in fixed engagement with the plate so as to prevent the inde pendent rotation of the lugs while in engagement with the plate. The operating levers 36 have their end portions 37 and 38 extending at right angles to the body portion thereof so that these ends 37 and 38 will extend in a parallel plane relative to each other, and these ends are provided with the apertures 39 as clearly shown in Fig. 17. The end 38 of each lever 36 is positioned between the slot 33 of one of the lugs 32 and a pivot pin 40 is then passed through the particular lug and also through the aperture 39 formed in the angularly extending end 38. In this manner it will be seen that the operating levers 36 will be held in the fixed pivotal engagement with one of the lugs 32. The shaft 15 is also adapted to carry the clamping strips 41 whichare held in a fixed adjustable position upon the shaft 15 by means of the clamping bolts 42 which pass through the clamping strips 41. By referring to Fig. 8 it will be seen that there is provided a pair of spacing blocks 43 through which the clamping bolts 42 pass so that the end portions of the clamping strips 41 will be held in parallel spaced relation. These clamping strips are supported upon the shaft 15 at a spaced distance below the op erating plate 29 so as to allow the pivoted operating arms 44 to be pivotally secured between the outer ends of the strips 41 by means of the pivot bolts 45. The upper ends of these operating arms 44 are pivotally secured to the operating levers 36 by passing the bolts 46 through the aperture 39 formed in the angular end 37 of the operating lever 36 and also through the upper end of the operating arm 44. These arms 44 are reduced at their lower ends as shown at 47 for the reception of the weights 48.

When the device is in operation it will normally assume the position disclosed in Fig. 2. When the wind or breeze strikes upon the vanes 20, the vanes will cause the hubs 18 and 18 to rotate, inasmuch as the vanes are carried by the fingers 17 and 17. As soon as the vanes begin to revolve about the shaft 15, they will draw upon the links 27, thereby imparting rotary motion to the sleeve 11 by means of the fingers 16 and head 12. Since the operating-plate 29 is keyed to this sleeve 11, it will also be caused to rotate. As long as the shaft 15 is rotated at a moderate rate of speed, the vanes 20 will remain in an extended position and continue to move about the shaft 15. If, however, the breeze becomes too strong and in driving the vanes 20 rotates the shaft 15 too rapidly, the centrifugal force will cause the weights 48 to swing outwardly since the sameare carried upon the arms 44 which are pivoted by means of the bolts 45 to the strips 41. This will cause the inner end of the arms 44 to swing inwardly, and although these arms are positioned in alinement with.

each other, the arms are connected to the operating plate 29 by means of the levers 36 which have their end portions off-set relative to each other so as to extend in parallel planes. A pressure upon these operating levers 36 will cause the same to move as disclosed in dotted lines in Fig. 6. This will swing the plate 29 slightly as disclosed by the dotted lines in Fig. 6 so that the plate will also shift the sleeve 11 to one side. As this sleeve is shifted, the fingers 16 will be shifted so as to draw upon the links 27. As these links are being urged in one direction by means of the links 16, they will draw upon the lips 24, thereby gradually swinging the vanes toward a closed position until the vanes have been entirely closed at which time the number of revolutions of the shaft 15 will be greatly reduced. As soon, however, as the number of rotations of the shaft 15 is reduced, the weights 48 will gradually assume their normal position, thereby swinging the plate 29 by means of the levers 36 toward its normal position, and thus causing the vanes to be swung toward an open or extended position by means of the sleeve 11, fingers 16 and links 27. V

A bridge 49 is held in engagement with a pair of the strips 3 by means of the clips 50 which are held in position by means of the bolts 51 and 52. This bridge 49 extends transversely across the frame for supporting the device as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2. A supporting block 53 is fixedly secured in any desired manner to the shaft 15 and is provided with the bearings 54 which rest upon the bridge 49. This block is adapted to aid in supporting the shaft 15 and at the same time easily rotate with the reduced amount of friction owing to the position of the bearings 54.

It is also very desirable to allow the vanes to be slightly closed and remain in this position even though the device is not operated. In order to accomplish this function, the collar 55 is slidably mounted upon the shaft 15 and has the secondary links 56 pivotally secured thereto by means of the screws 57. The upper ends of these secondary links 56 are held in pivotal engagement with the. arms 44 by means of the pivot bolts 58.

Since this collar 55 is slidably mounted upon the shaft 15 when the device is in operation and the weights 48 swing outwardly owing to the centrifugal force, the secondary links 56 will lift the collar 55 upon the shaft 15 without in any way affecting the operation of the device. A drum 59 having an annular groove 60 is also slidably mounted upon the shaft 15, but is not adapted to rotate similar to the collar 55. The bar'61 is provided at one end with the yoke 62 which is positioned within the groove 60 of the drum 59. This yoke 62 is held by means of the pins 63 from accidentally disengaging the drum. A short rod 64 is held by the clamping nuts 65 upon the bridge 49 and has its upper bifurcated end 66 engaging the bar 61 by means of the pivot pin 67. An operating rod 68 is pivotally secured as shown at 69 to the outer end of" the bar 61, and this operating rod 68 tapers so as to extend downwardly adjacent the lower end of the supporting frame of the wind mill. Adjacent the lower portion of the frame there may also be carried a strip 3, the support of which is not deemed to be essential and, therefore, is not disclosed. Upon this strip 3, however, there is carried a shelf 70 which is fixedly retained upon the strip 3 by means of the rivets 71. Adjacent the lower end of the operating rod 68 there is formed a plurality of openings 72 through which the pin 73 may be passed for retaining the'rod in a set position. In order to off-set the weight of this rod 68 there is carried a stem 74 which is pivotally secured to the bar 61. This stem 74 has its lower end threaded as shown at 75 for carrying the weight 76 between the clamping nuts 77.

If it is desired to prevent the vanes '20 from swinging to their spaced extended position, the pin 73 may be Withdrawn from the pin 72 and the rod 68 pulled downwardly and the pin again inserted. The pin will then rest upon the under surface 'of the shelf 7 O for holding the rod 68 in a set position. Upon pulling the rod 68 downwardly, however, the bar 61 will be pivoted upon the stem 64 and, therefore, the fork 62 will move the drum 59 upwardly. This drum moving upwardly will force the collar 55 upwardly, thereby causing the secondary links 56 to swing the operating arm 44 outwardly to a determined degree. This will cause the vanes to be swung toward a closed position by means of the connecting members hereinbefore described. After the vanes have been moved to this last mentioned set position, if the shaft begins to rotate fast enough to cause the weights 48 to be swung outwardly, the vanes will be swung toward a closed position until the number of revolutions of the shaft 15 is reduced. 7 From the foregoing description it will be seen that a simple and eflicient wind mill has been produced which has its vanes normally extending in an open position to catch the breeze, whereby the rotating shaft which is adapted to operate a pump will be revolved. However, when the shaft 15 beprovided the wind is too strong to allow the device to operate evenly.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new, is

1. In a device of the class described, the combination of asupporting frame, a shaft rotatably supported upon said frame, a sleeve positioned upon said shaft, means for supporting said sleeve, hubs having radiating fingers secured in spaced relation upon said shaft, vanes pivotally secured to said fingers, links connecting said vanes to said sleeve, an operating plate keyed upon said sleeve, bifurcated lugs carried upon said operating plate, operating arms pivotally mounted upon said shaft, operating levers pivotally secured to the upper ends of said arms and said lugs, said operating levers having off-set end portions, said arms being adapted to be swung outwardly when said shaft rotates with increased rapidity, said arms bein adapted to shift said operating levers whereby said operating plate will be swung so as to turn said sleeve, whereby said links will draw upon said vanes for swinging the same to a closed position thereby allowing the velocity with which said shaft is rotated to be reduced.

2. In a device of the class described, the

combination of a supporting frame, a shaft rotatably supported upon said frame, a sleeve loosely mounted upon said shaft, hubs having radiating fingers fixedly secured in spaced relation upon said shaft, vanes pivotally secured to said fingers, means connecting said vanes to said sleeve, an operating plate keyed upon said sleeve, operating arms pivot-ally mounted upon said shaft in alinement with each other, means connected to the upper ends of said arms and to said Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. (3. 

